Aeroplane passenger&#39;s safety belt



May 2, 1933. E, DQWD r AL 1,907,098

- AEROPLANE PASSENGERS SAFETY BELT Filed Jan. 14, 1930 Patented May 2,.1931

NITED STATES PATQENT osmosmmoN-n ,E. .DOWD, or" srArEN rsmNn, NEw YORK, AND FRANKLIN mm THOMPSON, or amenwoon NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNORS ":0 m RUSSELL MANU- rscrunme comm, or MIDDLETOWN', coNNEc'rIcuT, A CORPORATION or CON- NECTIGUT smormNE PASSENGERS ssrm 3m Application filed January 14, 1930. Serial No. 420,808.

This invention relates to safety belts, and has particular reference to safety belts for securing the passengers of aircraft in their seats in order to prevent injury to them 6 during sudden movements of the craft.

' Aeroplanepassengers safety belts as heretofore provided, consisted of a pair of flexible straps or webs anchored at one end to the floor or'seat and having a quick- 10 release buckle for securing together the opposite ends of the straps or webs after they have been folded over the lap of the passenger. The quick-release buckle usually comprises a cam-shaped lever tongue secured to one end of the belt and adapted to be inserted through aring or loop secured to the other end of the belt. When-this lever tongue is folded over after being inserted through the ring or loop it is normally locked in place by reason of the cam shape thereof,

which causes the ring to lodge and remain in the book of the cam. The buckle is released by moving the lever tongue backward so that the ring slips out of the hook of the cam. and the tongue is released.

This ty e of quick-release buckle will remain latched or closed only when the belt is held fairly tautly or when it lies flat. At other times it will,.because of its construc- 80 tion, work loose because ofslackness in the belt, vibration, twisting ofthe belt, and-the like. Since the buckle does not always lie flat or taut when in use, and as it is sub ect to vibration of the craft and movements of the passenger, it tends to work loose and frequentlythe buckle becomes unlatched and the desired safety function of' the belt is lost, resulting inliability of injury to the passenger who depends upon the belt for h1s safety while seated the craft.

As a typical instance assume that the belt has been adjusted to fit a large passenger, who has vacated the seat, and a smaller pas senger has taken his place. Usually the pas-.

' senger or the attendant fails to readjust the belt to fit the smaller passengerbecause of 'vide a safety belt of uniform strength neglect or because it is difiicult orimpossible to adjust the length of the belt. The buckle accordingly falls forward into the lap of the passenger and hangs so loosely that the ring .is dislodged from the hook of the lever tongue and slides out over the cam surface of the tongue lever, or subsequent strain on the belt, however slight,'causes the cam of the lever tongue to move the same out of the ring in accordance with its function under the circumstances, and consequently the belt is released, usually without the knowledge of the passenger. Thus, when the passenger has need for the belt upon which he is relying, the belt is ineffective for the purpose intended. This is especiall objectionable because the passenger woul naturally exercise more care if'thebelt upon which he would rely were not present, and a greater danger is thus entailed. A

It is the principal object of this invention to provide an aeroplane passengers safety belt which is fitted with a quick release buckle of such a character that it can only be released when the passenger intends to do so, and no accidental releaseis possible, whereby the aforementioned objections to present forms of aeroplane safety belts are obviated.

More particularly, a quick releasebelt is pro vided in which the buckle is locked or held positively in the closed bsition against acci-, dental release by separable means which in no. way hinders the quick-releasing action of the belt when it is desired to free the passenger. In short, positive releasing action on the part of the passenger or another is i re uired before the belt can be released.

nother object of this invention'isto provide a safety belt of flexible materialsuch as webbing, which is so arranged that adjustment of the belt to change its length is facilitated and made easy even to an unskilled passenger, and, to accommodate this adjustment with its consequent slippage of the belt strap or web, that part of the separable buckle-locking means which 'is adapted to be mounted upon the strap or web is placed on an adjustable carrier mounted upon the strap or web of the belt. 7 9, A further object of this invention is to prothroughout its Fength and at the same time to provide a belt whose exposed portion is ing the belt to introduce decorative material 7 or piecing the belt for this purpose.

These and other objects of this invention are obtained in/ ,a. preferred embodiment thereof in which two plain straps or webs of woven webbing or other suitable material are fitted with an adjustment buckle at each end by means of which the straps'or webs may be arranged in loops whose length is readily adjustable without requiring any additional securing or making operation. One end of each of the two loops is passed throu h a cleat or the like mounted on the floor oft e aircraft at either side of the seat or otherwise connected to the seat 'or the like.

Of the other ends of the two loops, one is fitted with a slidable ring and the other is fitted with a slidable lever tongue. This lever tongue is in. the form of an elongated hook,

the hook end being connected to the strap and being adapted to receive and hold the ring, and the other end of the tongue is extended in the form of a cam-shaped lever,

'which serves as a handle for releasing the rin from the hook of the tongue when it is desired to release the belt. The shape of this lever tongue provides the quick-acting re lease feature of the belt.

The handle end of the lever tongue is fittedwith one part of a separable snap fastener or the like, and the other part of the fastener is'mounted upon a loop or other carrier slidable or otherwise adjustable upon the belt in order to accommodate the length adjustment .of the belt. The two parts of the "snap fastener cooperate to hold the end or handle of the quick-release lever tongue down, but do not restrain or prevent the opening of the buckle when desired. Other equivalent or alternative holding means may be used, with facility, but the snap fastener has been found to be most effective and is preferred. The upper surface of the strap or web of the belt is provided with decorative applique which is sewn in place without weakening the belt in any way nor interfering with its proper function. Any suitable decorative material may be used and it is preferred that it be placed upon that part of the belt which lies over the lap of thepassenge'r, i. e., at either side of the quick-release buckle.

For a better understanding of this invention; reference is made to the accompanying drawing, in which I Figure 1 is a front view of the novel safety belt of this invention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary edge view of the same, showing the buckle in opening position;

Fig. 3 is an edge view of the complete belt and mounting thereof, showing the buckle in closed position;

' Fig. 4 is a cross-section taken along the line 4-4 of Fig; 1; and

, Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a portion of the belt showing the decorative applique.

,In the drawing, numerals, 10 and 11 jointly desi ate thetwo parts or straps or webs of the elt, and each of these parts is made of flexible material such as leather, but it is preferred that-woven webbing be employed, since this material is cheaper, stronger, more flexible, more uniform in strength, and has a longer life without being subject to the common causes of deterioration of leather. These straps 10 and 11' are-formed in one piece len ths having a ferrule 12 at one end, and an a j ustment buckle 13 at the other end.

- Thus, the straps 10 and 11 may be initially made in their final form, so that no sewing or other attaching or making operations are,

necessar when the strap 1s installed. Mounte on these strapsare the loops 14 and 15, the former being employed for holding down the loose end of the strap as shown par.- ticularly in Fig. 3, and the latter being employed to hold the two portions of the strap when it is looped as illustrated in Fig. 3.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 3, the straps 10 and 11 are formed into 100 s by passing the free ends thereof through the adjustment buckles 13 and throu h the loops 14. It will be seen that merely y loosening the straps 10 and 11 in their adjustment buckles 13 and ullingon the free ends of the straps, the engths of the loops ma be varied to suit conditions. One end 0 each of the loops formed by straps 10 and 11 is passed around the cleat 16, which.is secured to the floor 17 adjacent the passengers seat, to the passengers seat, or any other anchorage.

The other end of strap 10 is looped through the ring .18, which is preferably stam ed of sheet metal or the like in one piece, an made strong enou h to withstand a considerable strain. TheToop 15 of strap 10 is then ushed along strap 10 to a position adjacent t e ring 18 so as to hold this ring in position at the end of the loop of strap 10 as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3. Similarly, a. ring 19 is mounted on the free end of strap 11, and the loop 15 is pushed along the strap 11 to a point adjacent the ring 19 so, as to hold. the latter in position at the freeend of the loop of strap Journalled on ring 19 for free movement thereon, is the tongue 20 of the buckle. This tongue 20 is rigid and is formed of sheet metal with an eye 21 at one end, which is j ournalled u on ring 19, the hook 22 in which the ring 18 18 adapted to lodge, and a cam' sha ed lever 22; the end of whi 23 is exten ed and turned upwardly so a to form a handle, which may be conveniently grasped by the passenger for releasing the belt quick- Fig. 2, into the position shown inFigs. 1

and 3. will be seen that the ring 18 is lodged in the hook 22, and that the tongue 20 will remain in this latched or locked position so long as it lies flat against the belt as a whole in the manner illustrated in Fig. 3. If, however, the handle 23 is moved outwardly, either intentionally or accidentally, the rin 18 slips alongthe cam surface of'22', an inasmuch asthis surface is shaped so that an pull upon ring 18 or handle 23 causes t e tongue 20 to turn when it is not in closed osition, the tongue as a whole is released from ring 18,.and the belt as a whole is; also released, and becomes ineffective as a It. T

When the belt hangs loosely, that is, when no appreciable tension is applied to the belt,

the nature and shape of the tongue 20 aresuch that it will release itself, and frequently the passenger does not know that? the belt has become released and that no reliance can be placed upon it for safety. This also happens when the belt hangs loosely so as to permit the belt to kink and fall apart in the manner described. In order to prevent this accidental and unintended release of the belt, means is provided for holding the belt in closed position, this means in no way preventing the intended release of the belt, but merely holding the buckle in closed position against the liability of any accidental release as described above. p

In a preferred arrangement, this holding means for the buckle comprises a snap fastener of a conventional type, although any equivalent fastening or holding means ma be employed which will erform the lnten ed function. In this pre erred arrangement, one part of the separable sna fastener, which may be the female art 24, is mounted upon the handle end 23 o the tongue 2Q, and may be conveniently mounted by drilling a hole in the handle 23 and crimping the fastener part in place. The other part 0 the separable snap fastener, namely, the male part25, is mounted upon the loop 15 of the strap 11, and this loop 15 is so arranged that the male fastenerpart 25 lies in cooperative relation with the female fastener part 24 when the fastener is in closed position or in closing position.

The mounting of one part 25 of the separable snap fastener upon loop 15 compensates for and accommodates the ad ustment of strap 11 for length, without displacing the fastener part 25 with respect to the other fastener part 24, which displacement would ordinarily take place if the fastener part 25 were mounted directly upon the belt 11.

Thus, a very simple and effective fastening means for the quick-release buckle is provided, and one which does not interfere with the adjustment of the belt as a whole to fit applique of thin,

passengers of different sizes. Although other astening means and arrangements for holding down .the-tongue 20 of the quick-release buckle lie within the scope of the invention, and other arrangements for mounting these equivalent fastening means upon the belt may be employed, the arrangement described is preferred.

In assenger aircraft, it is desirable to provi e the'equipment with which the passenger is associated with an attractive.ap-, pearance, especially where parts of utility such as the passengers safety belt are formed of normally unattractive material such as. woven webbing, which because of its strength, uniformity, and durability, has many advantages over leather or other flexible belt ma-' terials. In order not to impair the mechanical advantages of webbing by the insertionof decorative materials, the application of decorative material has been devised in the arrangement of this invention. This 'decora-' tive arrangement consists preferably of an decorative stripping 26, shown in Fig. 5, this applique consisting preferably of woven silk with designs of some kind, and contributing npthing to the strength nor deterioratlng the mechanical advantages of the webbing in any .way, but serving merely as a decorative medium for that portion of the belt which passes over the passengers body, for example; that is, the outer surface of the belt from 16 to the quick-release buckle, or merely from the quick-release buckle to a foot or more beyond this buckle.

the anchorages It will be seenthat the new safety belt for I aeroplane passengers of this invention provldes many advantages over those heretofore employed, 1n that it is really a safety belt :which cannot become ineffective except when positively rendered so by an act of the passenger or another person. The danger of unauthorized or accidental release of the safety belt isprevented by this invention, and consequent injury to the passenger is also prevented. Since passengers equipped with these belts tend to rely upon them,'they are subject to injury-during sudden movements of the craft by being thrown out of their seats or against some ob ect, or the like,if-the belt has been inadvertently released because of the lack of the safety this invention.

While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described herein, it is to be understood that the invenlocking arrangement of In a safety belt, the combination of a two part flexible web, a ring attached to one web part, a cam-shaped tongue attached to the other web part and adapted to be releasably inserted in the ring and closed to join the web parts, a member on said one. web part. adjacent the rim and slidable along said one web part, an efement of a. separable fastener mounted on said member, and the other element of a separable fastener mounted on the tongue for cooperation with the first element to hold the tongue in closed position.

In testimony whereof we aifix our signatures.

RAYMOND E. DOWD. FRANKLIN ACKER THOMPSON. 

